Coming this year in our Youth Ministry ...

Saturday, May 22nd at 7pm to Sunday, May 23 at 9am: Sleepover at First Parish of Watertown

Sunday, May 30th: daytime field trip with Junior Youth Group ~ Activity TBD

Sunday, June 6 from 6:45 to 9pm: Intergenerational Movie Screening of “In And Out” cosponsored with Welcoming Congregation. This is what Amazon writes about the film "In and Out" ... When a Hollywood heartthrob (Matt Dillon, playing a Brad Pitt look-alike) "outs" his small-town high-school drama teacher Howard Brackett (Kevin Kline) during the Oscar telecast, the entire (fictional) town of Greenleaf, Indiana, wonders if Howard's really gay. More to the point, Howard wonders, too—quite a dilemma considering his pending marriage to Emily (Joan Cusack), who's patiently tolerated a three-year engagement. While a TV reporter (Tom Selleck) covers the ensuing furor, screenwriter Paul Rudnick and director Frank Oz make good-natured humor their highest priority, turning the "crisis" of coming out into a laugh-out-loud spin on conventional romantic comedy. This movie is PG-13, so youth under 13 will need explicit parental approval to attend.

Friday, June 11 at 7pm to Sunday, June 13 at 9am: Bridging Con at First Parish of Arlington ... includes option to go to Boston Pride Parade

Saturday, June 12 during the day: First Parish intergenerational group to participate in Boston Pride Parade – 40th anniversary celebration of pride

Friday, June 18th at 3pm to Sunday, June 20th by late morning: Camping Trip with First Parish of Watertown!

“Youth Ministry”=

All youth in 7th grade and up are invited to participate in our Youth Ministry. The activities and meeting times are determined by the interests of the group and range from meeting other UU youth to inspiring community service projects. We will have one group for senior high youth and one for junior, but will work together for some special projects. Our Youth Ministry programming includes growth opportunities in the areas of worship, youth-adult relations, connection, social action, learning, and leadership. Our youth always have lots of fun together while leading our community in being “principle activators” by putting our UU values into action.

"Coming-of-Age Program"==

In addition to our Youth Ministry activities, our 9th graders also participate in the Coming-of-Age program. A highly regarded program is the Unitarian Universalist tradition for recognizing our teenage youth as they are becoming adults. The goal for this program is for the youth to explore and define their self-identity as UUs. This includes but is not limited to actively participating in discussions about deep theological questions; developing a close relationship with a First Parish mentor; exploration of their own deepening spirituality; exploration of social injustice and involvement in Social Action work; and involvement in meaningful "community" worship. A program highlight is the presentation of personal credos during the Coming-of-Age worship service in the Spring.
See schedule for our Coming Of Age Program

“Breakfast Club”==

This "sunday morning" small group offers our 12 to 14-year-olds more autonomy as they begin carrying our UU principles into the world with deeper theological explorations, unique activities, and inspiring community service projects. Our youth will focus this year on exploring each of the six UU sources as they engage in art projects and go on “neighboring faiths” visits that will inspire their own UU faith.
See schedule for our Breakfast Club

STOP==

Our 7th and 8th grade youth will also be invited to participate during the winter season in an incredible community program called STOP, Students Together Opposing Prejudice. This interfaith program honors coming together, learning about the other religions in our area, and recognizing prejudice and doing what we can to stop it. First Parish of Sudbury enthusiastically supports this program and encourages all of our youth to participate. This program will be on Wednesday evenings this winter.

Morris Dancing==

Morris Dancing All youth in grades 5 and up are invited to participate in Morris Dancing on Sunday afternoons. Tom Kruskal has been leading Hop Brook Morris since 1990 here at First Parish of Sudbury . They perform ritual dances from England at festivals and events around the Boston area. There are many adult groups performing these dances, but they are one of the few kid's teams. Morris dancing comes from the Cotswold region of England and is a springtime ritual dance done in the small agricultural villages around Cambridge and Oxford. The bells, sticks, and colorful costumes combine with the vigorous dancing to wake the earth and drive away the evil spirits of winter and guarantee a good crop that summer. These dances are hundreds of years old and were passed down through the generations to us today.

Revision 64. Last edited Thu 20 May 2010 10:10am by RobertaAltamari